Corregidor Island

‘Since we are still new to Manila and the Philippines, we make it a point to spend our weekends, exploring new places and to get to know Manila and it’s history as best we can. There is quite a lot to discover and only once we are somewhat through, we plan to venture outside the city.

This time we took the Ferry to Corregidor Island, an important landmark, just 48 km off the coast of Manila Bay.

Corregidor is a small rocky Island west of Manila at the entrance of Manila Bay. Also known as “The Rock”, it was a strategic Bastion of the allies during World War II.

Today, all that remains are remnants of an intense period in History. As for us, we took off early in the morning, joining a tour, the only way to get to Corregidor

As soon as we arrived, we were put on to an open Tram- like bus and our jovial tour guide took us on a criss cross tour, while telling us much of the history that shrouds this place.

The ammunition bunkers are now empty of course

And the canons painted for display

No rounds in this barrel

But definitively no joking matter, these are real ruins of a very real war

And where today we can blissfully pose, men and women fought and lost their life

Where gun battles were fought and more than 20,000 bombs dropped, only to leave this entire Island without a single tree and without a single strand of grass…

Yet as time does, it heals and following a government led tree planting effort, the entire Island was restored to native jungle and today is blooming in it’s former glory